Rain or Shine! Trivia Night for Charity Kicks Off Pride Weekend

Hailie Durrett
Rain or Shine! Trivia Night for Charity Kicks Off Pride Weekend

Brit Burk, Drew Hope and Vitor Burk

A TORRENTIAL RAIN storm didn’t stop the participants at the second annual Big Queer Quiz from raising money for Grace Place! Teams gathered at Houston Cider Co. and sipped beers such as the Prider Cider, a raspberry lemonade hard cider brewed for Pride month, as they competed against each other in categories about LQBTQ+ history.


The festivities were taken indoors when a rain storm blew through, but emcee Amir Diamond kept the partying going. Grace Place, whose mission is to help youths and young adults experiencing homelessness, has been working overtime as the heatwave continues (and brings with it extreme afternoon rain). “We were able to kick off our annual campaign, which is centered around keeping our youth cool, says Courtney Sellers, Grace Place’s executive director. “The funds raised will go toward buying a much-needed ice machine to keep youth refreshed and allow them to focus on enjoying life.”

Local nonprofit Kindred Kitchen catered burgers and fries topped with caramelized onions, cheese and a special sauce for the 130 trivia-goers. Kindred Kitchen gives at-risk youth culinary and job readiness training that will prepare them for food and hospitality positions.

Natalie Ferguson, Amir Diamond and Zach McKenzie

o Jaynes, Camille Boudreaux, Stephanie Handler

Melissa Rodriguez, Matthew Gibson, Kenny Bacak, and Sarah Yates

Amy Tanguay and Gus Helpers

Courtney Sellers and Becca Saenz

Guests make their way indoors during surprise rain storm

Houston Cider Co. owner Justin Engle

A next-gen artificial heart from BiVACOR has successfully been implanted in a patient at Texas Heart Institute. The patient survived more than a week, until a donor heart was found for a transplant.

THE PIONEERING CARDIOVASCULAR inventors and surgeons at The Texas Heart Institute (THI) in the Texas Medical Center have made another huge leap forward in the treatment of heart disease, officially announcing yesterday what they’re calling a “monumental advancement."

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People + Places

Rachel Gardner with her flower necklaces and, at left, Calla Lilly necklace

ON SATURDAY JULY 27, Foltz Gallery presents Endless Summer, a lively, playful exhibit of works by a multi-generational group of 28 emerging and established Texas-based artists. Taking its name from the 1974 Beach Boys double-album, which compiled the group’s early 1960s hit singles, the show is a visual “mixtape” of colorful paintings, prints, photographs, wall-based installations, ceramics and sculptures, installed lovingly throughout Foltz’s spacious and sunlit galleries. Among the works in Endless Summer are several examples of handmade “sculptural jewelry” by artist Rachel Gardner — a series of wearable wildflowers and fruits, including olives and strawberries.

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Art + Entertainment